Hvar Wine Tours
Imagine an island rich in UNESCO heritage which tells its fascinating 2400-year story through its wines and indigenous grapes, with an expert guide by your side taking you through the centuries of wine excellence.
Start with the arrival of the Ancient Greeks, who first brought vines to the island from Paros, and visit the vineyards of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Stari Grad Plain, where wine production methods have changed little in the intervening millennia.
Move forward to the Roman times, and the vineyards of the Pakleni Islands with their villa rusticae and Roman mud baths, before a tasting in a basement replica of Diocletian’s Palace.
Head into the Venetian period, and the Great Rebellion of 1510-1514 on Hvar, and the winemakers from Vrbanj and Vrboska, before visiting the oldest Plavac Mali vineyard in the world, one of the few to resist the devastating phylloxera of the 19th century.
Learn more about the Socialist era of wine making in the 20th century through the organic excellence of a cooperative whose wines constantly win international organic gold.
And finally to the era of modern wine making, with exciting young vintners, including the only Master of Wine making wine in Croatia, the only Croatian wine served in a 3-star Michelin restaurant, and the outstanding wines of Croatia’s leading garage winemaker.
Or try a slow food and wine experience, discovering the lost grape varieties of the island – Mekuja, Palarusa and others – long lost to other winemakers, but very much alive in this unique tour.
Our local knowledge and friendships with the winemakers mean unparalleled access, right down to private tastings with historic vintages. Chose your tasting room options from candlelit cellar, waterfront vineyard, underwater cellar and speedboat transfer to a cave.
The island is Hvar, the company Hvar Wine Tours, and the wine experience is beyond extraordinary.
Hvar Tours
Plusculus putnicka agencija d.o.o.
Trg sv. Stjepana 7, 21 450 Hvar,Croatia
Agency registration number: HR – AB – 060248144
Personal identification number: OIB: 39713869851
Hvar Tours office: +385 21 741 824
Phone: +385 98 1865 454
Phone 2: +385 91 9438 675
Email: info@hvartours.com
Skype user name: mthvar
Paul Bradbury about Hvar Tours
Tourism on Hvar has been a wonderful thing to watch evolve over the years, and there have been changes in trends since I started writing about the island over six years ago. Things have certainly got more innovative – off-road safaris, cooking classes and a range of new adrenaline activities to name a few, but one area of tourism which has really taken off is wine.
Although I was a wine merchant for five years back in the UK, I was never particularly taken by the local wines I came across in Jelsa’s restaurants, and indeed it was only when I started researching my first guidebook for Hvar…
Wines of Hvar
By Radovan Marcic,
leading gastronomy critic and one of the three jurors on Croatian MasterChefIn order to understand the gastronomy of Hvar island, one must by all means get familiar with the island’s wines. The wine tale of Hvar is intriguing, has plenty of twists and turns and is, without any doubt, very interesting to food and wine connoisseurs.
Historically, it’s intertwined with and absolutely inseparable from the food tale. Wine-growing tradition most definitely began with the Greek colonization of the island, as shown today by the archaeological evidence of the ancient wine-drinking culture. From then on, the wine tale of Hvar, especially the chapter about the past few centuries which are easier to investigate, tells us about numerous ups and downs. Wine grapes have definitely dominated the island’s agriculture from ancient times. Just like they still do.
By Aleksandar Noršic,
board member United States Sommelier AssociationThe most noticeable local varietal is Plavac mali. Plavac mali frequently has moderate level of acidity, rich extract is significantly richer as sugar levels gather more easily. Wines from Plavac mali have seductive and very distinct flavour which makes them distinguish. They are often infused with a certain level of sweetness, especially in aftertaste, which is not to be confused with sugar residue.
Another varietal of major importance for this region is Maraština. Although this very famous white varietal has a very long historical background, today it is to be found in small quantities.